Earlier, we reported about director M Night Shyamalan's cardiologist father Nelliat C Shyamalan passing away. The other day, the filmmaker visited his father's ancestral home in Mahe. Subsequently, he went to the Mahe Beach, reportedly to immerse his late father's ashes in the ocean as per the cardiologist's wishes.
While announcing the news about his father's death in late 2025, Shyamalan said, "The amount of loss we are feeling is immense. But it is mixed with gratitude for having had him in our lives for these many years." Expressing his gratitude to his father for supporting him in his film endeavours, the filmmaker added, "My father came to America and got to see all of your love and it made him so happy. No words can express how much I adore him. I will try to live up to his example of kindness, optimism and joy."
Shyamalan has openly embraced his Indian roots more times than once. In multiple interviews, he said that he used to watch Indian entertainment alongside his family on and off. He also talked about paying tributes to Indian cinematic genre elements in films such as The Village and Avatar: The Last Airbender. For example, while speaking to CNN IBN's Rajeev Masand once, Shyamalan said that he took inspiration from his ancestral roots to integrate certain ideas into his films, such as the "assumption of the things you cannot see" in The Village. Speaking of which, the filmmaker is directing a film with supernatural and romantic elements, titled Remain, starring Jake Gyllenhaal.
